[Icequeen_in_ak]

I recently got some crocheted longies. So... I went to wash them, like I do all my other wool....

I put them on the hand wash cycle in the washer with some wool wash.

When they were done, they were so condensed. The original stich was really loose and now it's so tight and of course too small

Is there any way to get them to stretch back out?? And why on earth did they do this in the first place?? Is it because they were crocheted versus knitted?? (two pairs of longies.. sigh...) I washed them with some knitted wool as well, and these were the only ones effected.

 

[scrappinmomof3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Icequeen_in_ak I recently got some crocheted longies. So... I went to wash them, like I do all my other wool.... I put them on the hand wash cycle in the washer with some wool wash. When they were done, they were so condensed. The original stich was really loose and now it's so tight and of course too small Is there any way to get them to stretch back out?? And why on earth did they do this in the first place?? Is it because they were crocheted versus knitted?? (two pairs of longies.. sigh...) I washed them with some knitted wool as well, and these were the only ones effected.

Generally, when you have felted something down, you really can't do too much stretching of them to get them back to the regular shape they were in.Once they are felted, they have already shrunk some. You can try to just pull on them when they are wet to try to get them back into shape. It might work.

The reason these felted and others haven't has nothing to do with how they are made, knitted or crocheted. It all depends on the wool. Some pants/shorts/soakers are made out of different wools that allow for some machine washing and no felting or VERY minimal felting. I think the yarn used by Theresa at LTK and her licensees can be machine-washed because of the breeding of the sheep. However, there are others, like Treliske merino, that will felt up easily. It isn't the heat as much as the agitation of the fibers on the wool that does the felting. That is why if you take a wool wash soap and scrub at one area of wool, it will felt it more than other areas.

SO more than likely, this was a different wool than others you have been used to seeing, hence the felting.

 

[kath]

i've read you can put conditioner on the soaker and stretch it but i'm not sure how well that works.

 

[Icequeen_in_ak]

Are you talking just hair conditioner... or????

 

[Sustainer]

Yup, hair conditioner:
http://www.kiwipie.wahmweb.com/store...llary.asp?ID=5
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